Huge Month For California On The Jobs Front

Usually, economists hedge their words when you ask them about job reports. This time?

“This is a fantastic report,” says Chapman University economist Esmael Adibi. “Not only the numbers, but it’s very broad-based. When you look at the large categories of employment, almost every category is positive year-over-year.”

The long-struggling construction industry led the way, with a six percent gain. The key “professional and business services” sector was up five percent.

California’s 90,100 job gain in November is the largest since October of 2012, and the second-largest since the state started keeping track in 1990.

And, because civilian employment grew faster than the labor force, the state’s unemployment rate dropped a tenth of a point to 7.2 percent.

Locally, the Sacramento area added 5,500 jobs in November and the four-county region's unemployment rate now stands at 6.7 percent. That's down from 7.9 percent for the same month last year.

Capitol Bureau Chief Ben Adler first became a public radio listener in the car on his way to preschool – though not necessarily by choice. Now, he leads Capital Public Radio’s state Capitol coverage, which airs on NPR stations across California. Read Full Bio